Often times when a movie comes out that’s based on a book that I’ve had no interest in reading, I’m not putting much hope into the flick.
Mostly because I’m not emotionally invested in it already and sometimes because even the briefest synopsis doesn’t appeal to me.
That’s where I was at when I took the time to catch “Where the Crawdads Sing” last week.
Honestly, I was surprised at how beautifully it was shot and the attention to finer details in close-up moments.
The storyline overall wasn’t half bad and I could easily follow what was happening on the big screen despite not having read the book.
However, it didn’t really amaze or surprise me – so I’ll let you be the judge.
Fair warning, there’s a lot of back and forth between what counts as “present” and “past” time in this flick.
Where the Crawdads Sing is a film based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Delia Owens.
The film is directed by Olivia Newman from a screenplay written by Lucy Alibar and is produced by Reese Witherspoon, Jojo Regina, Luke Blumm, and Lauren Neustadter.
The film stars Daisy Edgar-Jones, Taylor John Smith, Harris Dickinson, Michael Hyatt, Sterling Macer, Jr., and David Strathairn.
The film is rated PG-13 for sexual content and some violence including a sexual assault and is about 125 minutes long.
Catherine “Kya” Clark (Regina) is a resourceful young girl growing up in a North Carolina marsh on the coast during the 1950s.
Her poor family lives in a shack with their alcoholic and abusive father who gambles their money away.
As her mother and older siblings, one by one, flee his abuse, Kya is left alone with him.
In time, her father softens but then abandons her, without warning, a few weeks after the only day she ever spends at school.
Now, at the age of seven, she is completely alone, but she learns to survive, and the only way she earns money to buy gas for her boat and food is to sell mussels.
The townspeople of Barkley Cove know little about Kya, nicknaming her “The Marsh Girl.”
On the same day that her father left, Kya takes his boat as far as the ocean and turns around but gets lost while trying to find her way home.
Fortunately, she comes upon a slightly older boy named Tate Walker (Blumm), who guides her home safely.
He was a friend of her older brother Jodie, and had known Kya since she was a very little girl.
Tate then begins visiting her in the marsh, and they become good friends over their teenage years.
He teaches her to read, write and count, and even lends her books.
Both share an interest in nature and they eventually begin a romantic relationship.
However, Kya (Clark) gets left behind once again when Tate (Smith) leaves for college and fails to keep his promise of returning to her on the 4th of July.
Over the next few years, as her art skills and knowledge of biology grow, Kya sends her nature drawings and research writings to a publisher – Tate’s idea.
The income from the book helps her keep her family’s property by paying off back taxes.
The publishing of Kya’s book leads to her rediscovery by her older brother Jodie, now a military veteran.
He informs her that their mother had wanted to find and reunite with the other children but she became sick and died from leukemia.
So, while there are lots of positive things coming for Kya – things naturally get worse before they get better.
It’s as if more problems happen for Kya before anything truly gets better.
If you’re a fan of historical murder mysteries then this is up your alley, but it’s not a big deal if you wait for it to stream or come out on DVD.
